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Clan Jetties

Clan Jetties form part of the Penang Heritage Trail. There used to be seven jetties until one was demolished by fire and now only six remain. Billed as one of the last bastions of old Chinese settlements on the island, this waterfront society is home to houses on stilts of the various Chinese clans.

Clan Jetties

Each jetty is named after a Chinese clan – the Chew Jetty is the most tourist-friendly with the most stilt-houses, the longest walkway, a temple that is worth stopping by and plenty of places for those shutter bugs and photo shoot moments.

Wooden walkways on the Clan Jetties

Initially, the area where the Clan Jetties now located was a char hionh (wood yard) littered with planks and firewood. After the construction of the Quay in 1882, the waterfront was developed with short public landing stages or jetties. Settlements grew on these foundations and they were used for the loading and unloading of goods and for the mooring of sampan (boats).

The Chew’s Clan Jetties Entrance and Temple

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Filming site for 初恋红豆冰, the home for Eric Moo

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Georgetown

A fascinating fusion of eastern and western influences, Penang is Malaysia’s most famous tourists destination. The island manages to embrace modernity while retaining its colonial traditions; due to its well-preserved heritage buildings Penang’s capital, Georgetown, has been accorded a listing as a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage Site in 2008.

Penang Bridge

Penang Bridge may not be an official sightseeing spot in Penang but it is the sight that greets most visitors to the island. A 13.5km-long suspension bridge that connects the island to the mainland at Seberang Perai, it is considered a Penang landmark, with locals comparing it to London Bridge.

Bird Eye View for Penang Bridge

Also known as Jambatan Pulau Pianng, before it was opened the only way to get to the mainland was via ferry: today the bridge is one of the busiest freeways in the country. The longest bridge in Malaysia and the fourth-longest in Southeast Asia, it is a toll bridge, with fees paid only when heading to the island.

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Kuan Yin Temple

Kuan Yin Temple is Penang’s oldest temple. Built in 1728, it is set on Jalan Masjid Kapitan Keling (previously known as Pitt Street) and was constructed by early immigrant settlers from China. Upon completion, the temple was one of the most magnificent Chinese-style structures in northern Malaysia.

Kwan Yin Temple

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Fort Cornwallis

Fort Cornwallis is the largest standing fort in Malaysia. Set close to the Esplanade and Penang Clocktower, the star-shaped bastion is one of the oldest structures in Penang. Named after Marquis Charles Cornwallis, only a set of ten-foot high outer walls remain, with an enclosed park within.

Fort Cornwallis

Built in 1786, Fort Cornwallis was intended as a defensive structure against pirates, Kedah forces and even the French during the Napoleonic Wars. However although it was initially built for the Royal artillery troops and the military, it served an administrative function rather than an actively defensive one.

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The Queen Victoria Memorial Clock Tower

The Queen Victoria Memorial Clock Tower is a testament to Penang’s royal connections. Commissioned in 1897 by a local millionaire, Cheah Chen Eok, to commemorate Queen Victoria’s Diamond Jubilee, it stands 60ft-high, with each foot representing a year of the Queen’s 60-year reign.

The Queen Victoria Memorial Clock Tower

Interesting fact: although it is hardly noticeable, due to the impact from bombs being dropped around it during WWII, The Queen Victoria Memorial Clock Tower leans to one side, much like the Leaning Tower of Pisa.

It has four tiers: the base is octagon-shaped and the following two tiers comprise four distinct sections with elaborate windows, balconies and a working clock on each side. The topmost tier is rounded off with Roman pillars and topped with a golden dome cupola.

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Penang Street Art

In 2012 Penang’s municipal council hired London-trained Lithuanian artist, Ernest Zacharevic and tasked him with breathing new life into some of the atmospheric Chinese shop-houses around the inner city.

Street Art by Ernest Zacharevic

His artwork is spread out across Penang’s city centre, along roads like Muntri Street, Weld Quay, Lebuh Leith, Armenian Street, Ah Quee Street and more.

More Street Art by Ernest Zacharevic

Zacharevic’s street art is pretty impressive: the most widely known is the 20-foot high ‘Little Girl In Blue’, a mural of a young child dressed in ocean blue pajamas flanked by the two real windows of its ‘canvas’ – a building along Muntri Street.

Little Girl in Blue by Ernest Zacharevic

Found just down the road from Eastern & Oriental Hotel, right next to this giant painting is a concentration of brightly colored trishaws just waiting to take you to see some of the more obscure artwork around Georgetown.

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New and Old Street Art

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Street Art Around Georgetown

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St. George’s Church

St. George’s Church is set next door to the Penang State Museum & Art Gallery. Built in 1817 by the East India Company using convict labour, it is Southeast Asia’s oldest Anglican church and one of the oldest buildings in Penang. The architecture and design are largely Greek and relatively unpretentious.

St. George’s Church

The gracefully proportioned building was designed by Captain Robert Smith (a military engineer) whose beautiful oil paintings still hang in the Penang State Museum. The interior is a cool pastel blue with marble floors and outside the main building on the church grounds is a memorial to Sir Francis Light in the form of a Greek temple – an elegant pavilion with definite Victorian style to it. It was built in 1886 on the centenary of the founding of Penang; just down the road is the double-spired Cathedral of the Assumption.

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Gurney Drive

We ended our day at Gurney Drive for some famous local food and delicacies.